The Jacob Burns Film Center‘s (JBFC) managing director has taken a new position as The National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene’s executive director. Dominick Balletta said that, while he was excited to take on this new role, he recognizes the significance of his experience at JBFC. 

“For the past 11 years, my family and I have been a part of the JBFC family,” Balletta told the BWW News Desk. “It has been an honor to live and work in Pleasantville, surrounded by the talented JBFC staff and dedicated Board of Directors, as well as a thriving community devoted to making this village a place that celebrates and supports culture in all its forms.” 

Located in the heart of Pleasantville, the Jacob Burns Film Center attracts the respect of locals and those throughout the tri-state area and beyond. For 18 years, the film center has been serving the community as a cultural hub for independent films and education. 

The five screen cinema and nonprofit art center is best known for educational programs and culturally inspired films. It also hosts events, community screenings and artist visitations to help fulfill its mission of acceptance and diversity. 

Not only does the film center celebrate the culture of the community, but it recognizes the surrounding institutions and their creative pursuits. Each year, the film center premiers the documentary that is created annually by Pace University students in their Producing a Documentary course. 

“They’ve been so accommodating to us over the last few years,” assistant professor Louis Guarneri said. “They allow us to come in off hours and do test screenings for the documentary class and they’ve even given us advice on how to get our films to sound better in the big theaters. And the fact that they even give students the opportunity to put their hard work on the big screen shows how much they love cinema.” 

Around 200,000 people visit the center each year to view current releases, foreign cinema, documentaries, curated series and attend 150+ special events.